Bryson DeChambeau’s future is in serious doubt as the end of his LIV Golf contract nears.
The two-time US Open winner is under contract through the end of the 2026 season, which ends in August, and reports say he’s exploring his options.
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DeChambeau has been in heated negotiations with LIV and is asking for up to $500 million to re-sign with the tour. He was also seen speaking to PGA Tour officials about a potential return to the tour.
And during these discussions, DeChambeau has stated that he is willing to step away from full-time professional golf to become a content creator and play only the majors. He has a YouTube channel with over 2 million subscribers, so financially it’s feasible.
Now that the Saudi Public Investment Fund is withdrawing its support from LIV at the end of this year, if DeChambeau isn’t welcomed back on the PGA Tour, YouTube might be his only remaining option. But is it really possible for him to do content creation full-time and compete for major titles?
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Dan Rapaport says Bryson DeChambeau could still win majors as a YouTuber
The biggest question isn’t if DeChambeau could be a full-time content creator. He has a huge following and a highly successful channel. But iron sharpens iron, so could he still compete for wins at the majors without playing professionally week to week?
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LIV Golf appears to leave players underprepared for majors as it is. Only one LIV player, Tyrrell Hatton, finished in the top 30 players at The Masters this year. So how can DeChambeau expect to win majors as a YouTuber?
Dan Rapaport, speaking on Dan on Golf, thinks that if anyone can do it, he can. Rapaport said, “He is the only guy I think could actually do it and not have his play suffer.
“It would be completely unprecedented. There is this prevailing wisdom in golf that you need to be playing before a major championship, and you need to get yourself into competitive shape.
“But Bryson is a unicorn. He is one of a kind. I think he gets those competitive juices from playing on YouTube. Most players have to be down the stretch on the back nine to feel like that, but I think he gets it from trying to break 50 with Tony Romo.”
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That last point is very debatable. There truly is nothing like professional competition, so no matter how many challenges he sets himself in videos, it cannot replicate four days of stroke play against other pros.
But if LIV does indeed fold soon, that theory could be tested.
Michael Kim disagrees with Dan Rapaport about Bryson DeChambeau
Having won the US Open in 2024, DeChambeau has earned a place on every golf major until 2029.
But even so, Michael Kim said that doing YouTube cannot properly prepare you to win golf’s biggest prizes.
Reacting to the idea that DeChambeau would only focus on majors and his YouTube venture, Kim said on X: “I just have a hard time believing this.
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“You can’t replace real competition reps. Breaking 50 with LeBron [James] isn’t the same as going against Scottie [Scheffler] at Hilton Head.
“Nice negotiation tactic but winning majors is his main goal and playing on the PGA Tour is the best way to get ready.”
If this isn’t solely a negotiation tactic DeChambeau is using against the PGA Tour and LIV, then it would be wild to see him try to pull this off. A major win as a YouTuber would go down in golfing history, and set a new precedent for the sport’s future.
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